


Breaking Things

by Highlander_II



Category: Iron Man (Comics), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Aged-Up Peter Parker, Anal Sex, Canon Divergence - Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Friends With Benefits, M/M, Multiple Orgasms, POV Third Person Limited, Sexual instruction, Superior Iron Man, Superior Iron Man fucking up all the lives, Undressing Each Other, Unrequited, nipple sucking, off-screen blow job, this entire relationship is a bad fucking idea
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:40:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,671
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23570980
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Highlander_II/pseuds/Highlander_II
Summary: A couple years post-Endgame (Tony's alive in this timeline), Superior Iron Man wakes up in the wrong dimension – and he's not happy about it. He does, however, have a little fun while he's there.
Relationships: Peter Parker/Tony Stark, peter parker/superior iron man
Comments: 5
Kudos: 83
Collections: MCU Kink Bingo Round 4, Smut 4 Smut 2020





	Breaking Things

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Huntress79](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Huntress79/gifts).



Everything was wrong. His bed. The light. The atmosphere. Even the air. It was all wrong.

But why?

Where the hell was he? Looking at the window, the view wasn't familiar. Rather, it was, but it wasn't the view outside he'd had when he'd gone to bed the night before. There weren't many clues in the room itself. Out the window, it looked more east coast. He tapped the window, which pulled up a weather report for the day.

Why the fuck was he in New York?

"Boss, Ms. Potts is calling," an electronic voice piped through the walls.

Fuck. "Ignore it."

"That would be unwise."

"Voicemail."

"Boss..."

"For fuck's sake. Fine."

"Tony?" came Pepper's voice through the system. He hated that voice.

"Yes dear?" This was pathetic.

"Morgan's at school until three. Can you pick her up today?"

Who was Morgan? And why would he care?

"No. I can't. I've got – conflicts." He gritted his teeth and added an obligatory, "Sorry."

"I'll have Happy pick her up. She'll have to stay at the compound until I get back from DC."

"Does she have a babysitter or a nanny to stay with her? I don't know how long I'll be out." Hopefully forever.

"Are you feeling all right?" Pepper sounded concerned now.

"Yeah. Haven't had my coffee yet. Long night." It was generic enough to sound true even if it wasn't.

"Okay. I'll have Happy take care of it. Get your coffee, have some breakfast, enjoy your day. Love you."

"Yeah. You too. Gotta go." He had the AI disconnect before he had to fake any more human sappiness.

He scrubbed a hand over his face, then found the bathroom to take care of his morning needs and wash some of the 'strange' off. As he was drying his hair, he asked the AI who the babysitter was.

"Peter Parker, boss."

 _Interesting._ He used a nearby console to pull up information on the young man. And check on some details to figure out where the hell he was. Whatever this world was, it wasn't home. Certainly not if Peter Parker was having anything to do with Tony Stark.

* * *

He made sure to stay out of the ridiculous compound for most of the day. He thought about checking in on Parker, but hanging around whatever school he was at might have gotten him arrested. At the very least, it would have drawn too much attention. Instead, he spent some time reading up on all of 'Tony's' friends. And enemies. He needed to figure out which timeline he was in. And maybe how to get back home.

What he'd discovered so far was that the Tony here was a big hero all saving the world and being a mentor and family man. It was disgusting. He could have anything he wanted – and he had a wife and kid. With no hint of anything on the side.

Tony was so disappointed in this version of his alternate self.

The only possible source of light was the little spider hero. His Peter Parker never came anywhere near him except to give lectures about how he's 'better than this' and 'don't you want to help the world?' No. He didn't. What had the world ever done for him?

Near six in the evening, Tony made his way back to the compound. He'd confirmed with the AI (FRIDAY, it's name was) that Parker was still there. Perfect. He could start on his experiment.

Morgan had had her dinner and Tony had played the doting daddy role for her so she would go to bed after finishing her homework. Pepper wouldn't be back until either tomorrow or the following day. And he'd even summoned up enough cordiality to ask Happy to get Morgan ready for school in the morning.

All of these mundane tasks finally out of the way, he caught up with young Parker while he was packing books into a well-worn backpack.

"You in a hurry to get home?" he asked.

"Uh, no. Why?" The kid seemed pretty nervous.

"Wanted to show you something." He crossed through a spare bedroom and out onto a balcony overlooking mostly nothing. This stupid compound was out in the middle of goddamned nowhere.

"Mr. Stark?" Parker said. "Why do you want to show me a balcony?"

Kid had a point. "I didn't. It just sounded less creepy than 'come with me'."

"Less ominous too. 'Come with me' sounds like getting fired or getting dead."

He wasn't wrong. Tony put a hand on Parker's shoulder. "I wouldn't do that to you." A breath. Then, keeping up appearances, "Speaking of – do I owe you cash or anything for watching Morgan tonight?"

Parker shook his head. "No. Ms. Potts has it all arranged. Wire transfers, I think. It's really nice."

"Good. Yeah. So, have you picked a major yet?" This was tedious, but he had to keep it up for a bit.

"I have a couple in mind. Churning through a bunch of core classes right now."

"Good. Pick when you're ready." He shifted and slid his arm across Parker's shoulders. "Have we talked about your girlfriend yet?"

"I – I don't have a girlfriend, Mr. Stark."

"Your boyfriend, then."

"Not one of those either."

Good to know. "Really? I thought those college kids would be fighting over you."

"Guess not. Or maybe it's not them. Maybe it's me."

Intriguing. "How do you mean?"

"I'm sort of interested in someone who maybe isn't interested back. But I don't know how to find out. And, probably wouldn't work if I did because there are – complications."

"A professor?"

Parker laughed. "No."

"Someone at a different school?"

"No."

"Another state? Another planet? Work with me here, kid."

"I'd really rather not say. It's kind of embarrassing."

"Best friend? Co-worker?"

"No," he said about the best friend. Followed by, "Um sort of? I mean, I don't really have a job, but kind of like that, maybe?" about the co-worker.

The young man's entire face had turned pink. This was good.

"You can tell me. I won't say anything." Build the trust, right?

Parker shook his head. "I've already told you too much. I should probably go. I still have some homework to finish for class tomorrow."

"Want me to drive you back?"

"Oh, no. That's okay. I can get there fine. Thanks though."

Tony watched Parker disappear through the room, eyes focused on an ass that was probably gorgeous only unseen in those jeans that didn't fit.

The kid had a crush. On Tony. The other one. That part was easy to figure out. And it made this experiment so much simpler. All he had to do was get Parker to fall for him. How hard could that be?

* * *

A lot harder than he'd anticipated as it turned out. The kid had a moral compass as strong as an electromagnet. Shit. So, he spent a couple months being just enough this world's Tony to not get questioned, while pushing just the right buttons to push Pepper away. Enough for an official separation for sure.

As satisfying as it would be to ruin this Pepper's life for petty revenge for things his Pepper had done, he couldn't risk that getting in the way of his primary objective. After all, he'd also spent those months building a very strong friendship with the spider kid. Young man. Whatever. He couldn't waste all of that hard work.

Though, it wasn't really work. He did like the kid. His mind was amazing. Sometimes he asked too many questions, but they usually, eventually, lead somewhere. Tony had to appreciate the results even if the process was irritating.

He also had to appreciate what the young man looked like without a shirt. Under all of those ill-fitting clothes was a nicely toned and muscular body. How much of that came from the spider bite and how much was Parker working out? Tony had to spend several hours a week working out just to say where he was.

The day he'd taken Parker down to the gym to be his workout partner, he'd almost jumped the gun on his plan when Parker had taken off his shirt, wiping sweat from his chest. Tony had schooled his features back and spent time admiring that beautiful body. He'd even let Parker catch him doing it a few times. Parker had blushed and looked away.

Tony had wanted him to show off. He'd get there.

Today he had a plan. He'd invited Parker to lunch on the pretense of tinkering around in the lab. But he had a motive here. He needed Parker to see him distraught over Pepper leaving. It was definitely playing on Parker's empathy, but it was necessary.

They were sitting on the couch commiserating – mostly Tony was commenting about Pepper leaving and he wasn't sure what had happened. He was drinking too. Enough to make it look like he was getting a little drunk.

Tony waited for just the right moment, then he leaned in to press a slightly off-kilter kiss to Parker's mouth. To his delight, Parker kissed him back for several seconds before he pulled away.

"That was very nice, Mr. Stark -"

"Tony."

"- but you're a little drunk and this wouldn't be a good idea."

"No. It would be an excellent idea. You think I can't consent because of a little scotch?"

Parker fixed him with a semi-serious look. "That and the fact that you're just getting out of a long term relationship."

"Eh. She already knows what I am. This wouldn't change that."

"That isn't a good reason for me to sleep with you, Mr. Stark."

"Fuck. Call me Tony." Then he took a chance. "Have you even had sex before?"

"I don't see how that's relevant."

"So no, huh?" Tony rocked his head back and forth. "It's okay. Isn't it cool now to be a virgin?"

"I don't know if it's cool. But it's not the relevant part of this conversation. Virgin or slut, I'm not sleeping with you while you're wasted."

Parker was the most infuriatingly responsible college kid on the planet. Fucking hell, this was annoying. He hadn't had to work this hard for anything since his parents were alive. Shit.

"Can I at least get you to stay the night so I don't do something stupid?" he asked, giving his best half-drunk puppy-dog look.

Parker frowned at him. "I thought FRIDAY did that job for you?"

"Whatever. Just go." Tony hauled himself off the couch and padded down the hall to his room. He was pretty good at pretending to be drunk.

He'd honestly expected Parker to leave. But the young man came into his room to ask if he was okay. There was more banal conversation until he convinced Parker to stay. And he made sure he would be cuddling Parker when he woke up in the morning.

He let Parker wake first – or believe he had – then snuggled closer as he 'woke' himself. It was, so far, the most manipulative thing he'd done, but Parker was warm and smelled amazing – like soap and sunshine (happy damned kid) – so he couldn't bring himself to feel too bad about it.

Parker let out a sigh. "Get up, Tony."

"Pretty sure I don't have school today."

"Tony."

Grumbling nonsense, Tony shifted off Parker, but didn't get out of bed. He cracked an eye open when he felt the kid shift on the bed.

"Enjoy your hangover, Tony."

"Why are you angry at me again?" He pushed up onto an elbow. "For not living up to your lofty expectations of me? For being human? What?"

Parker looked at him for a moment before he said anything. "I'm not angry at you."

"Just disappointed, right?"

"No. Not that either. I just – what do you want from me? What's going on here?"

"We're friends, right?"

"We are. But I get the sense that you're also looking for benefits."

So Parker _had_ thought about it. That was something he could work with. If Parker was thinking about it, he was just that much closer to getting what he wanted.

"Would that really be a bad thing? It is a mutually beneficial arrangement." What was wrong with him? That didn't sound like any version of Tony at all.

"I'm not so sure about that."

"How so? The whole idea is two people who get along agree to have sex that doesn't have all the strings of a relationship."

Parker rolled his eyes. "I know what it is, Tony. I'm just not sure how equal and balanced it would be."

"Why?"

"What?"

"Why do you think it wouldn't be balanced? Are you planning to keep a spreadsheet log of who asks for sex when? That seems a little anal-retentive."

"No, Tony. But I think this will lean heavily in your favor."

 _This._ Parker had shifted. Progress.

"Most things do. It's the nature of not giving a shit. I'd offer to pay you to balance it out, but you don't seem the Sugar Daddy type."

"Definitely not." Though Tony did notice Parker didn't sound as disgusted as he thought he would. That was interesting too.

Tony got off the bed and faced Parker. "The only question here is – do you want to fuck me?" Maybe the directness would flip a switch in the kid's head.

"I'm sorry, Tony. Even if I do, you're still married to Pepper. And I can't. I gotta go to class."

He watched the kid go. Fuck. He had been hoping not to have to go that far. But, apparently, he'd have to break the whole thing.

It was good he liked breaking things.

* * *

Two months later, he had finalized the divorce with Pepper. It had been a lot easier than he'd thought. Probably because he let her set up the child custody arrangement to her liking. He bore the child no ill will – in fact, he didn't really care much about her at all. He'd only forced himself to do the absolute 'dad' minimum unless he needed to put on more of a show for someone to keep up appearances. Even then, he did the least he could get away with.

As much as he would have liked to visit the little spider kid and show him the papers to get what he wanted, he figured it wouldn't go over well. He could wait. Again.

Turns out, he didn't have to wait long. Parker came to see him a couple weeks later. Asked if he was okay. Offered his usual empathetic support.

Tony played the game – stoic, but a little miserable. At this point, he'd take a pity fuck if that's how it went down.

Nothing happened that first night. Nor the next few. Parker just came by to hang out.

Tony figured out why the Friday night Parker showed up looking haggard and depressed. His new girlfriend had dumped him and he'd come to his good friend Tony for a little commiseration.

In fact, when Tony opened the door, Parker asked, "Are those benefits still available?"

Tony had stepped aside and waved him in. He got the kid a beer and they leaned against the kitchen counter. Part way through Parker's ramblings about the ex-girlfriend, Tony began unbuttoning the flannel shirt Parker was wearing. There were no objections, so he pushed it off Parker's shoulders.

He ducked his fingers beneath the young man's t-shirt and scratched his short fingernails over the smooth, warm skin. That got him a soft, choked sound he was sure Parker was trying to suppress. No words. No speech. Instead, he leaned in, slowly, and pressed his lips to the side of Parker's throat.

The kid groaned and pressed a hand against Tony's back. So he nibbled at Parker's skin. Testing the waters. How far would he be allowed to go?

Tony kissed and licked a trail along Parker's neck, across his jaw until he could meet Parker's mouth in a searing kiss. Parker kissed him back, moaning against his lips.

So Tony rocked his hips, brushing Parker's growing erection with his own. He felt Parker's fingers grip at his shirt. Perfect start. But not quite enough.

Tony braced a hand on the counter and rolled his lower body again. Parker curled both legs around his hips and began grinding against him. Tony was half sure he was going to drop the kid.

Jackpot!

Chuckling softly, Tony drew back from the kiss. "Eager. I like it. But we do still have to get out of the clothes."

Parker grunted in aroused frustration as he put his feet back on the floor and began the painstaking task of undoing the buttons on Tony's shirt. Tony wriggled his arms free and the shirt fell to the floor. He lifted his arms so Parker could whisk off his t-shirt. Then he did the same for Parker, letting his fingers trail over the warm, muscled chest he'd exposed.

The kid grabbed his shoulders and tugged him forward for a sloppy, but enthusiastic, kiss. This was going better than he'd planned.

"Have you had anyone in your ass before, Peter?" Tony asked, doing his best to hold the kid back for just a few seconds.

Parker shook his head. "No. Never. You'd be the first." His voice was so breathy. It was hot. As was the prospect of being the first to take his sweet young ass. His own control was beginning to slip.

He nudged Parker to sit on the counter while he plucked the guy's shoes and socks off. His fingers moved to the waistband of Parker's jeans and there was no resistance at all. Better still, Parker lifted his hips so Tony could tug the denim free.

"My god you have an amazing body." That wasn't even a bullshit line. Parker was fucking gorgeous.

"Thanks," he replied, ducking his head, obviously hiding his shyness.

If Tony had a heart, that might be cute.

Parker looked a little nervous when he reached his hands to the fly of Tony's pants. He did absolutely nothing to assist his partner. Kid had to learn sometime.

Maybe he had. Partway through, Parker leaned forward to slide his tongue around one of Tony's nipples. Then he began to suck on it. Steady even pressure, then harder. Tony hadn't really been one for much nipple play, but damn, the kid was good at this. And it felt amazing. Did his counterpart here have a nipple kink? Had he told Parker about it?

Fuck, it didn't matter. Tony gripped Parker's hair and held him there. Letting the kid have a bit of fun.

He let Parker indulge much longer than he would anyone else because the young man's mouth was fucking glorious. What he wouldn't give for those lips around his cock. Maybe later. He had a goal.

Reluctantly, he dislodged Parker from his chest. "Time to relocate. You wanna go into the bedroom and put that gorgeous ass on display for me?"

Parker stretched up to kiss him before he hopped down from the counter. "One thing," he said, then pushed Tony's pants to the floor. "Wanted to finish what I'd started."

Tony grinned and arched one eyebrow as Parker sauntered off to the bedroom. Sassy little fucker.

He followed shortly after, curious what sort of display he'd find. He was definitely pleased with what he saw. Parker had stripped out of his shorts and was kneeling in the center of the bed. He lifted his hips so he was settled on all fours by the time Tony was fully in the room.

"Very nice. Better than I expected even." He tapped his palm against one firm butt cheek. "I cannot wait to fuck you," he rumbled as he opened a nightstand drawer. He produced a few condoms that he dumped on top of the table, and a bottle of lube.

He watched Parker lick his lips. So eager. So ready.

"You can still tap out if you want."

Parker shook his head. "I'm in. Just – go slow, okay?"

"Sure." He adjusted Parker's position a little, then knelt on the bed behind him. Condom on and a generous application of lube, then he guided his cock to Parker's hole. "Rock back onto me," he said, guiding Parker's hips a little too. He'd let Parker set the pace for the preliminary. After that, he'd be at Tony's mercy.

Parker pressed back, slowly at first, then a little faster. When he finally had taken all of Tony's cock, he let out a long, low moan.

Tony gave him a moment to get used to the feeling of being completely filled, then he drew his hips back, letting his cock drag slowly out of Parker's ass. When he was nearly all the way out, he whispered, "Breathe, Pete." Then he shoved his cock back into the young man's ass, relishing the howl from his chest.

"Do you want me to stop?"

Parker shook his head. "Fuck no. Fuck!"

"So you want me to fuck you then?"

"Yes please," Parker half whimpered.

"And you want it hard and fast?"

Parker's head bobbed up and down. "Yes. Yes. Just – fuck yes!"

"Happy to oblige," Tony said and drew his cock back again – slowly still. Building the anticipation before he thrust forward again. Setting a brutal pace for any human he would encounter. For Parker, it probably barely registered. And it definitely wasn't causing him any pain. No, for that, Tony would have needed his armor. His. Not that nano-tech bullshit from his counterpart. This world's Tony needed to move into the future.

For now, Tony would use his considerable human prowess to fuck Spider-Man silly. As silly as he could make him.

"You'd better not come on my bed," he panted over Parker's back and immediately heard the kid whimper.

A few seconds later, he heard a crinkling sound. He slowed his pace just long enough to figure out what was going on – damned kid was problem solving in the midst of being half-blitzed out of his mind. Parker had rolled a condom onto his own cock – almost entirely one-handed apparently.

It took every ounce of energy he had for Tony not to laugh. Though, he had been serious about Parker not coming on his bed.

He got his pace back up, fucking the hot, tight ass that had been so deliciously presented to him. He grinned to himself when he felt Parker come.

"How many do you want?"

Parker's voice was strained when he asked, "How many what?"

Tony's smile was slippery and wicked. "Orgasms, Peter."

"Oh fuck. How – wait – what?"

"Just wait."

Tony kept going. Fucking Parker hard and fast. Listening to him whimper and moan and come. Impressive. Whether that was part of his powers or just his natural biology, it was hot.

And exploitable. If he chose to use it that way. For now, he wanted to see how many he could get.

All told, Parker came five times. Really four-and-a-half, but Tony rounded up. By the last one, Parker was half-collapsed on the bed, sweating and mewling. The kid still had plenty of energy though – like he was ready to keep going. Tony, however, was not. He'd built up his stamina, sure, but he'd used that up making Parker scream.

"Kid, take a nap. If nothing else, give your dick a rest." He shoved a hand against Parker's face, pushing him away. "I need a break. But I'll teach you more later."

He didn't know if Parker fell asleep or not. What he did know was that he woke to Parker's lips on his nipple and a hand on his cock.

Eyebrow arched in curiosity, he said, "Morning."

Parker swirled his tongue around the nipple a couple more times, then made an audible slurping-sucking sound when he lifted his head. "Hi!" he said brightly.

Fuck this kid and his chipperness.

"What are you doing?" Tony asked.

"Waiting for you to wake up."

"Sure. Why?"

Parker frowned, but somehow, still managed to look happy. What the hell? "So we can go shower, then I can suck you off."

"Don't have to wait for the shower."

"No, but I wanted to." Parker traced a finger around Tony's other nipple. "But we don't have to."

Tony grinned. "The shy thing works for you, doesn't it?" His head rocked back and forth on the pillow. "I definitely want that mouth of yours on my cock. I just need a couple minutes to wake up. So, feel free to keep going with what you were doing while you wait."

He was going to hate leaving this tasty morsel behind. It boosted his considerable ego knowing Parker all but worshiped Tony. Beyond that, Parker also had a huge crush on him. If nothing else, once his counterpart came back, he'd have a slutty little spiderling to fend off.

"Go get the shower ready," he instructed, nudging at Parker's shoulder.

Parker gave pretty amazing head for a novice. Either he was a natural or he'd been lying about how much experience he had. He also took instruction really well. Tony could train him right up so he'd be perfect. He needed a little pet like this back home.

* * *

Parker couldn't stay the whole weekend – pity – because he'd made plans with his aunt. Tony did make him promise to come by on Sunday evening though. He wanted to send his new toy to class well fucked.

He did have to play with the young man a bit. If Parker asked to come over, Tony wouldn't always agree. He'd make Parker wait. The sex was much better that way. Parker would be riled up, but less aggressive and assertive. Pliable.

It took a good couple months, but Tony was sure he'd trained himself an obedient little cockslut. He could send Parker a text at lunchtime and have an amazing blowjob after dinner. Between the two would be a series of texts from Parker describing what he had in mind or what he wanted Tony to do to him.

Until he could figure out how to get back to his own timeline, he needed a way to entertain himself. This was it.

"I have a treat for you tonight," he told Parker when he walked in. The kid's face practically lit up. "I'm going to let you fuck me."

"Oh. Oh wow. Are – I mean, are you sure?"

"Yes. I'm pretty sure you understand how it works."

"Of course."

"Good. Come on."

In the bedroom, he gave Parker a few additional instructions before he stripped down and stretched out on the bed. He kept an air of casual laziness while he watched Parker strip and crawl onto the bed with him.

He wanted to watch as Parker slid his cock into him, but the sensation was too damned good. His head tipped back and his eyes closed as Parker pressed all the way in. Fuck. It had been far too long since he'd had someone fuck him. He just hoped Parker had some idea what he was doing.

Tony let out a quiet sigh and opened his eyes. "Just mind your strength, kid. Don't break me."

"I won't," Parker said. Then he was fully concentrating on fucking Tony.

Parker gripped his hips as he thrust into him. Tony could feel the early markers of the bruising that would be there later. And he didn't care, because the fucking felt amazing. Parker's technique could use some refinement, but he'd balanced the power and speed very nicely.

Tony reached for his own cock. Fingers curled around it, stroking to the time of Parker's hips. He grunted as he came, spilling across his abs. He breathed a sigh while he watched Parker keep going.

"You gonna come, Pete?" he asked, not really giving a shit one way or the other.

"Thought you wanted a couple more," Parker replied, voice breathy.

Tony shook his head. "Not yet. Come for me. I'll let you get me off again later." His little cockslut could suck him off before bed.

* * *

He and Parker had gotten into a nice rhythm with their beneficial arrangement. They'd meet up a few times a week and wear each other out. Sometimes Tony would ambush Parker on campus or at the deli and drag him off somewhere for a quickie. It was the perfect arrangement.

Which made the sudden SHIELD ambush so disorienting.

"Fuck me," he muttered as Agent Coulson and a squad of folks armed to the teeth stepped off the elevator.

"Trying to run would be unwise," Coulson said.

Yeah. He knew that. This stand-off would be so much more fun with his endosym armor. "What do you want?" Tony asked.

"Primarily, to know what you've done with Tony Stark."

"I _am_ Tony Stark," he declared, arms extended out to his sides in a display to prove his point.

"It's okay. We don't really need you to tell us. We have other ways." Why did Coulson always sound both flat and ominous? It was so annoying.

Tony was about to respond to the government toady when a portal opened. He rolled his eyes. "Fucking hell."

Beyond that, he didn't react when Strange stepped through. He was a little shocked to see Parker exit behind the wizard though.

"He's all yours," Coulson told Strange, but his crew of gunmen didn't retreat.

"You don't belong here," Strange said flatly.

"No shit, Sherlock. I'd be back home already if I had any idea how to get there. Wanna come with me, Pete?"

Parker's face was stony and cold. "I'd rather not."

"When did you know?" He was curious about this. At Parker's confusion, he clarified his question, "That I wasn't your Tony."

"I had my suspicions when you started the separation from Pepper."

The kid was good. "But when did you _know_?"

Parker gave him a knowing smile. It said he had known a lot earlier than Tony had thought.

"Good job, kid."

"Go home, asshole."

"You kiss your aunt with that mouth?"

Parker just barely refrained from sighing. Tony could see it. "Dr. Strange, please send him back and bring our Tony home."

"No one will ever be as good as me, Parker."

Then Tony's world became a bad carnival ride as he was hurtled through dimensions to land back in his own room in San Francisco.

* * *

Peter watched the empty space where the alternate Tony had been, waiting for their Tony to return. Part of him wanted Dr. Strange to unwind the last several months so all of this never happened. A big part. Especially since he didn't know where his Tony had been this whole time.

Tony appeared in the space previously occupied by his alternate self. Peter immediately went to him and hugged him. "I'm so glad you're back, Tony."

"Okay. But – where did I go?" He hugged Peter back and warily eyed the armed crowd in his compound.

"We were hoping you could tell us," Peter said.

Tony shook his head. "No idea. Wasn't gone long though. Felt like five minutes."

Peter took a step back from him. "Tony, you've been gone eight months. And, I'm going to have to bring you up to speed on what happened."

Dr. Strange stepped forward. "It would also help if you had any information about where you've been."

Tony's face twisted a bit. "I – it was the old tower. But, like I said, I was only there five minutes."

"Was the tower destroyed?" Strange asked.

"No. It was intact. Slightly different color scheme than what I had. Maybe Cap got to do some of the decorating." He dropped a hand to Peter's shoulder. "And you can fill me in after I talk to Pepper."

Peter took Tony's wrist and led him to the couch as the SHIELD guys and Dr. Strange started to leave. "About that..."

"What?" Tony asked with a frown.

Coulson indicated he'd be back later for a debrief. Peter waved for him to go.

Peter said, "A lot's happened while you were gone. Your – counterpart – sort of made a mess."

Tony grabbed Peter by the arm. "Tell me right now..."

"Morgan and Pepper are fine," he quickly reassured Tony, mostly to get him to stop squeezing his arm. "But – you're divorced."

"Shit."

"Sorry."

"But they're okay?"

Peter nodded. "Yeah, Tony. They're okay. He couldn't hurt them if he wanted to keep my trust."

"There's something else." Tony fixed him with a look. "What did you do, Pete?"

"What I had to do. I was a distraction while Coulson located Dr. Strange and then while Dr. Strange figured out how to send you – the other you – back."

"What did you have to do?"

Peter shook his head. "It's not important. The important part is Dr. Strange figured out the weird timeline rotation and how to shift it back." He didn't want to talk to Tony about what he'd done. Or admit that he'd do it again to save Tony.

"Everything all right, kid?"

"Yeah. It's just – he was you, but he wasn't. He somehow walked right on the line so any suspicion would feel like coincidence. Until he went too far."

Tony's whole posture changed. "Peter, did he hurt you?"

"No, Tony. I'm fine." And he would keep up that story for as long as possible. He hadn't told anyone specifically what he was doing to keep the other Tony distracted. He'd deal with it later.

"You're sure? This bit of defiance is new. You usually tell me everything."

"It's not defiance, Tony. I'm just not ready to talk about it yet. It's still pretty raw. It just happened. It just got resolved. I can't promise that I'll be able to tell you any of it. But I'll be okay."

"Come here, kid." Tony pulled him into a hug that he greatly needed. "I don't know what happened, but I'm here if you need me."

"Thanks," he said, hugging back. It was so good to have his Tony back. It would take time for things to feel 'normal' again, but he'd get there.

**Author's Note:**

> (( re-dated post challenge reveals ))


End file.
